2005 Erasmo Vina La Reserva de Caliboro

Estate grown and bottled in the Maule Valley Region of Chile (The Maule Valley is near the epicenter of the recent earthquake). A blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc and 30% Merlot, this is the classic blend of the French Bordeaux grapes, but grown in Chile, under the direction of Francesco Marone Cinzano, a top Italian producer. Aged 18 months in French Oak barriques (barrels to you and me), the Erasmo has aging potential and should continue to improve for several years. The grapevines  were imported to Chile from France especially for this project.

The color is black cherry with a light red halo. Loads of spice on the nose, dark ripe fruit, dusty autumn leaves and whiffs of oak. A light mouth feel, but big on flavor. The first taste to hit your tongue is ripe blackberries, blueberries and silky french vanilla, and then you feel/sense the tannins at the back of your mouth. A huge, long lasting finish of cherries, tea and butterscotch. Still a young wine, with a nice firm structure. This is a wine that you want to buy several bottles of, drink one now, another in a couple of years, and another in a few more years. The tannins will soften and the level of flavors will become more complex with the passage of time. The Erasmo has a classy sophisticated flavor now and will pair well with steaks and chops.

Wine Courtesy of Palm Bay Imports

Update: Earthquake Damage to Chile’s Wine Industry

Earthquake a major blow to Chile’s wine industry

Chilean wineries were hard-hit by the earthquake. The industry is trying to assess the damage.

The earthquake caused substantial damage in Chile’s wine region: Stainless steel fermentation tanks tipped over, wine bottles busted and wineries without power.

While it’s still too early to tell the full extent of the damage, early reports indicate that the damage to one of the nation’s major industries will be far-reaching.

The quake’s epicenter hit in the heart of the country’s largest wine production areas causing substantial damage in areas including the Cachapoal, Colchagu, Curicó and Maule valleys. These areas produce the majority of the country’s Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot grapes.

“We’re talking about tens of millions of liters of wine down the drain,” said Alfredo Bartholomaus, importer Winebow’s brand ambassador for Chilean wines. “It’s going to be devastating. Some of the wineries, everything they had for sale is gone. Fortunately this happened before the harvest season started.”

Most Chilean wineries say they plan to get back in business and move ahead with harvest season either later this week or next.

“At the moment, we don’t see a major impact on the vineyards, so we are maintaining the enthusiasm regarding the quality of the upcoming grapes,” Salvador Domenech, managing director of Santa Rita, said in an e-mail statement. “We particularly trust that American consumers will support the Chilean industry, so our job now is to ensure resuming production as soon as possible.”

Chile in 2009 exported more than 670 million liters of wine, valued at $1.36 billion.

The country’s largest producer, Concha y Toro, whose most popular U.S. brands include Frontera and Xplorador, has temporarily suspended all production operations for at least one week, according to a statement on its website.

Concha y Toro suffered major damage at three of its 11 production facilities in Chile, plus minor damage at some of the others, said Jane Kettlewell, spokeswoman for Banfi Vintners, the U.S. importer for Concha y Toro.

But initial speculation that Concha y Toro had lost 40 million liters of wine in the earthquake is inaccurate, she said.

`It is considerably less, how much less remains to be determined,” Kettlewell said.

“The fact that the company is diversified in terms of wineries means that it can shuttle production around and try to compensate for the facilities that need to be repaired.”

Miguel Torres, a Spanish wine company with holdings in the Curico Valley just north of the Maule, reported no casualties but major damage.

“The losses are significant at the winery: around 300 casks smashed, one stainless steel vat with a capacity of 100,000 liters has been cracked, losing all the wine, thousands of bottles destroyed,” the company said in a statement on its website. “Luckily the main structure of the buildings has withstood the quake.”

At Caliboro Estate in Maule, owner Francesco Marone Cinzano said in an e-mail that “the cellar is standing” and about a dozen barrels have “fallen to the ground from the racks.” But the offices, laboratory and tasting room had “serious damage.”

At least for now, there should be no impact on U.S. wine drinkers, who have increasingly turned to Chilean wines because of their value prices.

“There is plenty still available in the United States and there shouldn’t be a shortage for awhile,” said Gus J. Suess, director of final sales for Southern Wine & Spirits.

“If things aren’t straightened out fast enough, there is going to be a shortage eventually.”

BY ELAINE WALKER

EWALKER@MIAMIHERALD.COM

http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/03/03/1509089/earthquake-a-major-blow-to-wine.html

Chilean Wine Industry Hit Hard By Earthquake

Tragedy struck Chile overnight on Friday in the form of a massive earthquake that has displaced two million people, severed north-south bridges in the narrow country, and killed hundreds of people (see coverage on nytimes.com).

Chile has a large, export-oriented wine industry. Some of infrastructure, particularly in the regions of Maule and Rapel (including Colchagua), has been damaged or destroyed. Contacted via email, Lori Tieszen, executive director of Wines of Chile USA, says that Jose Manuel Ortega reports “devastation” in Maule and that his winery sustained some damage; Julio Bouchon of J. Bouchon, “is safe but his beautiful old winery is leveled,” Tieszen writes. In 2006, the Oxford Companion to Wine described Maule as “slowly changing its reputation of growing only bulk wine.”

“One can smell wine along the roads in front of the wineries. Tanks laying, collapsed buildings, barrels and glass everywhere,” winemaker Sven Bruchfeld told James Molesworth, wine critic for Chilean wine at Wine Spectator magazine.

Molesworth has been tweeting what he hears from wineries (follow his feedfor the latest). Another source told him, “Big damage to the industry. Millions of liters on the floor.” He also tweeted that Montes and Lapostolle were hit hard in Colchagua, an area that had seen lots of investment in the wine indsutry. Feel free to add news in the comments if you have updates.

Depending on the region and grape variety, the harvest has already started or was scheduled to start soon in the country.

http://www.drvino.com/2010/02/28/chilean-earthquake-wines-wineries-damage/

2001 Arboleda Merlot – $15

Talk about an end of the bin special, this is a Chilean Merlot from the Colchagua Valley that has nine years of bottle age. Now most wines in the under $20 category are not made to be cellared for too long, but then again almost all red wines could benefit from a couple of years of age, so how much is too much? This particular Merlot is a joint venture between Robert Mondavi and Vina Caliterra of Chile, it has a bit of Cabernet Sauvignon added along with a splash of Carmenere to give the Merlot some body and structure. It has been aged in oak barrels, so there is a good chance this wine is still improving, rather than on the way down. The color is a glistening see thru burgundy. The nose is elegant, spice drops, dark stewed fruit, beef gravy and a dusty flower garden scent. The mouth feel is light upfront with tannins grabbing at the back of your mouth. Not much fruit is evident, I had the bottle open for three hours before I tasted it and I am using my Taste of Purple glass that helps bring air into the wine, so the wine shouldn’t be “tight”. The vanilla from the oak is there, but it is not over powering. There are is prune or fig flavors, but the main component is the vanilla from the oak. I can’t come to any conclusions about cellaring wine because 1) I don’t know under what conditions this was stored and 2) I don’t know what it tasted like when it was young. But, it is an out of balance wine, still drinkable but not all that enjoyable.

2006 Santa Rita Medalla Real Cabernet Sauvignon – $16

This review is by request and a good request it is. The Santa Rita is rated #57 out of 100 Top Wines of 2009 by Wine Spectator. This Cab is from a single Estate in the Alto Jahuel region of the Maipo Valley in Chile. It is aged for 12 months in French oak barrels. 95% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc, the alcohol level is 14.6%.

The color is a deep dark, slightly see thru ruby red, just like a Cabernet Sauvignon should look like. The nose is interesting, Fig Newtons and spice drops and toast with jam. Vanilla from the oak is very prominent on the palate, and then the dark fruit kicks in. Kind of an oily mouth feel, it really has the flavor stick to your mouth. The finish is chocolate cream mints and the finish does go on for awhile. It has a lot of tannins, but not out of balance, you can feel the tannins in the back of your palate, but it is smooth not a jolt. The taste changes as the wine opens up, different levels of tastes, just like the expensive wines. A very nice, serious  wine.

2007 Viña Ventisquero Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon – $10

Unquestionably the best $10 Cabernet Sauvignon from South America that I’ve had in a long time!  The Chilean vineyard’s name Ventisquero is Spanish for “glacier”, which takes its name from the hanging glaciers in the nearby Andes Mountains.

For such an inexpensive wine this Cab is very full bodied with an intense red color.  It has hints of vanilla, oak and sweet cherry.  It is full bodied, but has an elegant, velvety finish of cherry and black currant.  It is delicious! Drink with mature cheeses, grilled meats or Buffalo Wild Wings with Asian Zing.

2008 Cono Sur Pinot Noir – $8

Cono Sur was born around the oldest Chilean Pinot Noir vineyards. For years they have promoted organic wine production methods since it benefits everyone from the consumer to the vineyard worker to the environment.

This wine is a rich ruby color with a nose that takes you for a walk through a cherry orchard. It’s light and breezy, soft and approachable, smooth and balanced.

It tastes like you’re nibbling on the bushels of fresh black cherries while you browse at your local fruit stand or farmer’s market, then finishes with a taste of toast that you reminds you of your Sunday morning scrambled egg breakfast. Awesome alone, or have with Chilean Sea Bass. Or turkey bacon if you’re eating that breakfast!